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Ollie just laid her very first egg!!

Hi Everyone! I purchased Ollie from a Pet Shop on June 2, 2011. She is the sweetest little tiel ever. The last week she has become quite hormonal, and has been out of sorts at times, so I have been moving her from the bedroom into the livingroom, back and forth sometimes several times a day because she doesn't like the noise of the TV, and seemed to just want to be quiet and "out of sight". Yesterday I read on-line about female tiels egg laying habits, especially during the fall and spring. I have a parakeet also, but both are in separate cages.

So about an hour ago, I took her back to the bedroom, covered her as usual, but checked her every 10 minutes or so because she just wasn't the happy Ollie I know. Low and behold, I uncovered the cage and there she was in the corner of the cage just sitting on the floor. It really scared me. I thought she was sick. So I put my hand into the cage and tried to gently lift her up out of the corner, and about that time she moved a little bit, and sure enough, out popped the egg!! I was simply speechless. So I gave her some scritches, and she was able to get up onto her bird seed cup and then onto the perch. i immediately brought her back out into the living room and took the egg out of the cage. I have boiled it, and am about to put it back into the cage on the floor. I cut up some paper towel and have a plastic lid from a yogurt container for her to sit in. I also have written down the day and time the first egg was laid. And I also marked it. I will do the same for any others she lays in this clutch. Even though she doesn't have a mate I will let her go through the process of sitting on them now. If I don't she will just lay all over again.

I hope I don't have a chronic egg layer on my hands. But if I do, I will deal with it accordingly. I am so happy I gave her such a good seed/pellet diet and she had lots of calcium in her fresh veggies and her cuttle bone, and also had whole wheat bread, white rice cooked on occasion, and her cooked broccoli and carrots. The egg is really, really solid and looks great!!

Thank God I joined this forum and also have done alot of research on tiels. Her behavior the past week did put me on notice that something was definitely going on with her. I had a female tiel a few years ago who was bonded to a male. They were in the same cage. Bella, the female, was almost 15 months old when I introduced the male, Taz to her. In those 15 months Bella never displayed any egg laying behavior and did not lay any eggs until she and Taz bonded as a pair.

So, what a surprising day I've had. Ollie is searching all over for her egg now, and it is cooled off enough I must give it to her.

I'll share the happenings of the next few days and weeks with you on occasion.

Re: Ollie just laid her very first egg!!

Argh! I've had several females who succumbed to egg-laying problems... either with or without a male in the house, and never due to mating with him when I had him. I'm sure there is plenty on the Web about this, but it is a serious problem, and one I never found a solution for. My last vet advised limiting daylight hours, but I was unwilling to put the bird in a closet during the daytime in Hawaii (where I was) due to heat. Make sure you supplement her with calcium... you can find liquid calcium at the pharmacy or at a health-food store. A vet visit may be advisable, if you know of a good avian vet. I was also told by bird-friends that the cause was my feeding the hens (in addition to their regular food) soft foods such as corn, etc. I am not sure that is true. It might be. Anyway, take this seriously. I had hens laying clutches continuously, one clutch after another, and nothing I did made them stop. I just don't know what the current advice on this matter might be.

Re: Ollie just laid her very first egg!!

Thanks for posting, Linda. No, I haven't fed her soft foods per se, the only thing she has on occasion is cooked broccoli and carrots and cooked white rice. She doesn't eat much of it either. I knew something was up with her because the last few days all she did was eat food and drink alot of water. I read a good article on-line today about that and it was very educational because this is a real sign she will be laying eggs very soon. And sure enough she did. I'm just so thankful I was in the bedroom looking in on her because I know they can die from being egg bound. And can die fast too! I don't think there is much of anything i could change that I've done to take care of her. She gets at least 12 hours of sleep a night, no soft foods, plenty of fresh green veggies (parsley, kale, leaf lettuce, celery), and plenty of water. Also she has a nap every afternoon for about 3 hours. I will just have to play it by ear. She is the sweetest little tiel I've ever had. I was very afraid today. I'll be watching her carefully now because it will be every couple of days and another egg. Don't know how many she will lay. We shall see. Oh, the perils of "Pauline" . . . . I mean of "birdhood"!!! LOL

Re: Ollie just laid her very first egg!!

She will probably lay one every other day until she has 4 or 5... I don't know what to tell you other than that. I was told to rearrange the cage and to change its location so that the bird no longer feels "safe" to lay a clutch. Nothing I ever did worked, though. The latest/greatest info on this may be on the Web. Best of luck, Ellen!

Re: Ollie just laid her very first egg!!

Well, I'm getting ready for tomorrow because I expect another egg sometime close to afternoon. I'll be watching her carefully. Today I let her sleep in an extra hour, and she also went back in the bedroom this afternoon. It definitely is a catch 22 so to speak. You cover them up so it darkens the cage, but on the other side of the coin then you have a bird "nesting" so to speak. She is eating and eating her food and loves her kale, parsley, raw carrots and celery. Tomorrow I am going to give her boiled egg yolk. She needs the protein too! She also is getting her calcium from the cuttle bone. I have increased the raw veggies to giving them twice a day now, morning and evening. She loves them! I am always cleaning her cage out and never let the bottom get very dirty. It is rather wasteful of food and seed at times, but the "cleanliness" has to be top priority or she will get a bacterial infection from bad food and/or food with droppings on it and then it will just be more trouble. I read today that some say if you keep the bottom grate in the cage (which I do not do), and they lay and sit on that grate it discourages them from laying. Don't know how true that is. I just don't care for grates, never have used them. Today I removed all of the bells off of her toys. She doesn't seem to miss them and still uses the toys for her stimulation time, but I think today that has lessened to some degree. In the meantime, I'm just going to play it all by ear, and have plenty of time on my hands to do so. Thanks for the encouragement. I'll keep you posted as to the "happenings" of the next few days!

Re: Ollie just laid her very first egg!!

Ellen
Just posted on the rainbow bridge but my vet recommended limiting daylight hours too - I found it hard because the evenings were my time with Jaspa. Also rearranging cages was another idea. As I mentioned in the other post Jaspa's on hormone injections again x3 two weeks apart and she'll have another one in 3 months for maintenance - so far she's not clucky again.
I also bought some soft fabric and folded it up in the bottom of her larger cage for her to sit on so it was comfortable and warm.

Re: Ollie just laid her very first egg!!

Kaz, thanks for your info. The idea of putting a soft cloth in the bottom of the cage is an "awesome" idea. I'm going to try that!! Waiting for egg #2. So far, she hasn't laid it today, but it should be anytime now. I hope she won't have to have the shots, but if she immediately begins this behavior all over again after this is over I'm going to make an appointment with a vet. I don't know if there are any avian vets close by. I'll have to do some searching on-line. If the shots work then I will agree to it. I would prefer not to, however, I don't want to see her health deteriorate and her loss of all of the calcium in her body, etc. I'll be keeping in touch!! Again, thank you, so much for your replies!

Re: Ollie just laid her very first egg!!

Egg number two was laid about 8:00 this evening! Everything is o.k. with Ollie at this point. I really feel sorry for her that this has begun so very early in her life, especially since I have no plans to get another tiel and/or breed her. I'm sure going to change some things around after she finishes up this clutch. Hopefully she won't immediately start all over again!

Re: Ollie just laid her very first egg!!

Yeah - she seems pretty young to me. Have you been able to feel the egg before its laid? They may lay whether you have a second tiel or breeding. Jaspa laid as a single bird but she's bonded to me so probably thinks I'm her mate - such confusion! Is Ollie sitting on the eggs all the time? It amazes me how they manage to roll them underneath and sit for such a long time. Jaspa had 5 eggs on the last time and would roll them in one at a time and get comfortable - and when she came back to them having eaten its like she would count them to make sure they were all there!

Re: Ollie just laid her very first egg!!

So far she isn't setting much! I put a little cardboard box with just one side on it on the cage floor with the two eggs in it. This time I didn't boil the second egg, really no need to do so other than hopefully she won't crack it and then I suppose it would be "lay another egg" in her mind. I am thinking that I might have helped create some of this early egg laying myself, because each night I would go to Youtube, and find cockatiels of all kinds, singing, talking, etc. etc. and she would just LOVE that activity. She would sit on her seed cup, and I sit here in my recliner, and watch every move they made. She did get very verbal it seemed when a couple of them would sing and chirp and would get all excited and move around her cage alot. I have stopped going on-line with the birds now. She doesn't need any additional stimulation for sure. I had to run some errands this morning and when I came back home she had her two eggs, a couple pieces of kale (she LOVES it) and some whole wheat bread pieces all lined up in her little egg box with the two eggs. You know I read so much about kale, but only began purchasing it about 3 weeks ago, and fed it to her every day since then. It is just like I had a message from the Universe/God to feed her kale because it really helped with the calcium. And of course the parsley, celery and carrots also helped. I just think she really bonded fast with me when I got her, because in a couple of days she would whistle when I was out of the room, I would whistle back, and she loves for me to sing to her, play the piano, and whistle. I began whistling "You are my Sunshine" when I first got her, and believe me she knows that song, because she sits on her rope perch and flaps her wings and displays them to me when I sing to her.

Even though it is a worry to some extent, quite frankly I am really enjoying this little tiel laying experience. I grew up on a farm where we had chickens, ducks, geese, cows, and pigs, so I have been seasoned as a youngster being around all of the animals.

I don't know if she will lay her third egg tomorrow night after 8:00 in the evening. I will watch her closely because it usually is bedtime for her at that time. Last night I sat in the bedroom on the end of my bed while she was laying the second one just in case she had trouble. For as young as she is, she really is strong. It does make her quite tired after she finally pushes that egg out. And they are pretty good size eggs too. And very solid. I am wondering how many she might lay! Time will tell. I'm just so happy she didn't get egg bound on that first egg!

Re: Ollie just laid her very first egg!!

I've never heard of kale and had to google it! Thats cute about her having her bread lined up with her eggs! Has she laid her third one? She sounds so cute with her music! Im not sure whether the internet stimulation would have made any difference or not - its cute watching the utube clippings though. I must say I always worry when Jaspa is ready to lay her egg and am relieved when she's laid one or the whole lot - it must take up a lot of energy to lay them poor thing. The other day I caught her going down her ladder in her night cage (where she usually lays her eggs) to the bottom I think to be clucky so removed her out and shut the door straight away - so far so good :-)

Re: Ollie just laid her very first egg!!

Hi Kaz, Yes, we have egg number three, laid yesterday about 12:30 (noon). I was expecting it the night before, but it didn't happen. Yes, I watch her very carefully when I see signs she is going to lay. She wants to be in the bedroom covered up, and will fuss and fuss until I move her there. Then I sit on the end of my bed, and uncover her every few minutes to be sure she isn't egg bound. Yes, it really has to be difficult for her because of the fact she is sooo young. But she is a "trooper", and just sits there and patiently waits until she can push that egg out, and then it is back to her rope perch or her seed cup to eat. I have been putting her to bed much earlier at night so now she is getting 14 hours minimum sleep. Yes, kale is "excellent" for calcium intake for birds. I had done research on "Cockatiel Cottage" (a great website for information) concerning foods to feed new tiels and that was one of the veggies on the list. I had been giving her leaf lettuce, and would have never picked up that package of kale the day I was shopping but they didn't have any leaf lettuce that day so I picked the kale. That is a miracle because I really don't know, other than the parsley I give her every day if she would have had enough calcium in her body to form the egg shells so perfectly.

You know, I read several forums each day, and I don't think alot of folks really understand how stressful breeding is on a hen. And also, breeding birds isn't just letting two birds get together and then watch them proceed. It is really a very important and responsible job for the caregiver to be sure nothing happens to the pair (or in this case my hen) while they are in the process.

So now she has three eggs. I boiled the first one, and I noticed last night when she was setting (she likes to set for awhile before she goes to sleep) one egg was set aside. I wondered if maybe that was the one I had boiled. I left all of them just like she left them. She is still sleeping this morning so soon I will awake her and my keet and clean them and water them and watch how it all goes today. She definitely is in the "brooding"/"setting mode for sure. It really has been a joy for me to watch this all take "flight", even though I really was scared when I realized what was happening. I hope this will just be a fall and spring thing, but we shall see. I will continue to feed her well. We have a strong bond already and I've only had her 3 months. When I saw her in the pet store, my heart just melted and I had to take her home with me. I really hoped she was a hen, because I love ALL tiels, but hens are my favorite. But I never dreamed she would be laying eggs.

I'll post when the next egg arrives. Don't know how many we will end up with. Have a blessed day!

Re: Ollie just laid her very first egg!!

Yeah hens are really special and I would always want to have one, just like I like the males for different reasons. Jaspa likes resting her beak next to my face and having snuggles. Its amazing having the bond in just 3 months - I've had Jaspa nearly 9 years now and we've been through thick and thin together over the years.

I tried looking for kale at the veggie shop today but coudnt see any.

I visited a bird shop today and bought a few things - and we were looking at a large cage suitable for a conure that tiels could use to go outside in - a bit more room for them. Might get it for Christmas. I'm actually ordering one of those wingdow perches for Christmas - Jaspa (and Gabi did) loves sitting on my arm and looking out the window at the trees. Actually it was a beautiful sunny day here yesterday so Jaspa was outside in her cage for a couple of hours but I have to sit with her otherwise she calls out - had a few wasted hours when I was meant to be doing cleaning but read my new Birdtalk mag! It was nice for her though - she loved watching all the wild birds and listening to them. When my husband arrived home from work she got all excited so he was pleased as Gabi was more his 'mate'.

Re: Ollie just laid her very first egg!!

Hi! Egg number 4 is here. Ollie is just popping those eggs out like a "pro"! I live in the midwest (USA), so our weather here is a typical seasons. Right now we are about to enter into Fall, a beautiful time of the year when temps are cool in the a.m. and very nice during the day. Just finishing up a very hot summer. (thank God for air conditioners). Then of course Winter will be here about the time of Thanksgiving. Our winters are very intent. Last year we had a blizzard that dumped 15 inches of snow on us within about 8 hours. No one was able to go any place for a few days. I've lived in this area of the country my whole life, and the last 10 years or so have brought real climate change to us. When I was a child, living on the farm, we had very intent winters, but for many years they moderated so it was a livable situation. Now we are back to very, very hot summers, sometimes very dry, and sometimes very wet. No in between. We don't have much Spring weather, it just moves right into HOT weather, and the Fall is never long enough.

I am in the process of shopping for a digital camera. So when I get it, I will proceed to put some pics on the forum so everyone can see my beautiful Ollie! In the meantime we are "hanging in there" with this little "project" we have going at our house. Right now she is nesting. Kale is of the cabbage family. You might find it in that area of the store. It is a very close match to swiss chard! Don't you just LOVE to shop in those Pet Stores!! Now if I were "rich" I'd be bringing home "stuff", that I'm most certainly sure I can do without!! LOL

Awwww! Jasper is sooooooooooooooo adorable! I don't care what anyone says, tiels are just heartwarming "buddies" to us! I'll keep you posted. Have a blessed day!

Re: Ollie just laid her very first egg!!

Hey Ellen, how is Ollie doing? Has she been dedicated at sitting on her eggs? Fall (or autumn as we call it) is a great time of the year - spring is pretty neat too. We are now into spring - actually our winter wasnt so bad. I'd like to be snowed in and not go to work for a few days! I guess with the cold winters you have to put up with really hot summers - we're more even here. There is a programme over here showing on tv called Fatal Attractions (on animal planet originally) - about people (mainly the US) that keep dangerous animals as pets - last night was bulls and buffalos - the week before bears and before that snakes. I find it incredible each time I watch it and am grateful I am sticking to birds and the usual domestic pets! I'd like to get a bichon mixed with a ****su dog at some point.

Re: Ollie just laid her very first egg!!

Hi, Kaz, Well Ollie didn't lay her egg yesterday as usual so I thought maybe she was finished. But low and behold this morning she was sitting in her food cup when I got up, and she had laid her egg there. I felt really bad I didn't catch her because it seems when she is ready to lay the egg she likes me to be close by. I did check her a couple of times in the night and did find her in the food cup about 3:00 this morning, but I thought she was just hungry and eating her seed since I've been putting her to bed about an hour or so earlier in the evening. I am sure this is a learning experience for both of us. So now we are up to 5 eggs. She is eating, and does play with her toys some and sleeps but doesn't really pay much attention to the eggs. I see one has a "dent" in it now, don't know how that happened. She doesn't seem very interested in them at this point. And I don't know how many more she could lay. Her hormonal behavior has really tamped down since the beginning of all of this. Of course I took the bells off her toys in the cage, and as I said I put her to bed earlier in the evening, and we don't watch the tiel videos on youtube now. I'm trying everything I can to make this a "one time experience", for the "fall" season, and am so hopeful it will not occur again until next Spring. Speaking of dangerous animals there is a woman from New York whose face was completely destroyed by her chimpanzee that had lived in her home for many years. She had to undergo face reconstruction, and after two years of this terrible misery, she has just now been on TV showing off her new face and being grateful to be alive after that terrible experience. I always say that "animals" are just that. They do not have the ability to think as we do and we must respect that fact. I think sometimes people go overboard with exotics and think they can trust them.

Yes, our winters here can really be blustery. I think it soooo neat we have the web to share our different cultures and experiences across the "pond", and all over the world. I am a lover of culture, and enjoy conversing with ALL peoples. I found a real inspiration in Dr. Deepak Chopra, who you may have heard of, and I meditate on a daily basis. I am deep into mind-body-spirit work, and the connection between the three. I am a Christian, and will ALWAYS believe in God, but for me, the "enhancement" of Dr. Chopra's beliefs for my life have been astounding. I only live one moment at a time. I don't look back to the past, and I don't look forward to the future. It has really changed my life from one that used to be full of "anxiety" about every last thing, to a life of "peace", and tranquility, even in the midst of life's challenges.

I'll check back in a day or so and let you know what's happening with Ollie! I also like to watch animal planet, and also the "dog show competitions". We have both of the dog breeds you mention in America. Today in this country it costs BIG $$$$$ to buy a pedigreed dog. But we have many, many animal shelters, and bird rescues, so there is always something to find and choose from those places. I think a dog like the one you would like would just be precious and sooooooo neat, and I would bet full of personality and easy to have in your home.

Re: Ollie just laid her very first egg!!

Kaz, Since you have had so much experience with Jaspa and egg laying, I have a couple of concerns I was going to ask you to address. It seems that Ollie isn't setting much at all on the eggs, and I see where she has been picking on the shells so that a couple have been "seeping" the yolk and white. I keep taking out the white paper towels I use on the bottom and cleaning up the cage several times a day because I don't want her to get salmonella from perhaps eating a piece of food that was on the bottom of the cage that might have some of this "stuff' on it. I feel like I'm in a catch-22 again because if I take out the eggs that she picked at then I am about 99% sure she will start this process all over again and I really don't want that to happen. But if I leave them in the bottom of the cage (this is day 11, so we have a LONG way to go before day #21-2, I stand the chance she could get sick. Any suggestions? Thanks so much Ellen

Re: Ollie just laid her very first egg!!

Hi Ellen, I'll reply properly later but if one of Jaspa's eggs crack I throw it away else it will go rotten, even though she may lay another one to make up for it. Occasionally she hasn't bothered manufacturing another one , sometimes she has. Im trying to think back to when Jaspa first laid eggs and whether she sat on them properly - I'd still leave them in if they havent cracked. Also, if they crack the egg part inside will stick to her and will be hard to separate from her feathers - not very pleasant. One time one was stuck under jaspa and I had to pull it off and Im sure it hurt her. Maybe boiling them might be your answer? Or you can buy these 'pretend' eggs but she may know there not the real thing - I think I tried something with Jaspa but it didnt work - she was too smart! Karen

Re: Ollie just laid her very first egg!!

Yes I heard about that poor women after the chimp experience. What a long ordeal for her. I've heard of Deepak Chopra too - I think he's been on the radio a few times here and I've seen him on Oprah years ago. I wish I could live like you in not looking back or forward - I do both but probably more forward at the moment. We've been going through a tough time with my husband's ex partner among other things. I want to see light at the end of the tunnel! I was brought up a Christian but don't go to church any longer though still have the beliefs.
We brought the pot that Gabi is burried in back home tonight - decided it was time to bring him home (he's been in mum's foyer since he died). He's resting by the ranchslider below the curtain rod he used to like perching on. We're also going to water blast his cage this weekend - dismantling his cage might be a bit harder than bringing his pot home.
Speaking of shelters when I retire Im going to volunteer at a bird rescue place - decided thats my calling.
Hope the advice helped somewhat about the eggs - I'd definitely remove the ones that are cracked and throw them away.

Re: Ollie just laid her very first egg!!

Karen, thank you so much for the info on the eggs! I will take your advice and remove those she has pecked at and/or cracked. If we have a few "replacements" so be it, I just don't want her to get sick with a bacterial infection. Those can be very challenging and rough for tiels!

Well, as I said, I am a Christian and I will always believe in God and for most of my lifetime I attended a church. I am a musician, and began my music ministry when I was only 3 years old, playing the piano by ear. My Dad and his family were ALL given the gift of music by God, and I just followed along in his footsteps. He played the guitar. I would sing with him as a child. The piano playing was my "saving grace" after he died unexpectedly in a farm tractor accident when I was only 9 years old. I was an only child, so my mom and I moved off of the farm my dad cash rented, and we lived in the small little town of 1000 people while I was growing up. A few years later my Mom re-married. I spent alot of time with my grandma (her mother) at that particular time. So my "music" kept me going at that time, and has done so for my entire life. I shared my piano and organ ministry with many church denominations, playing for weddings, funerals, contatas, choirs, etc. etc. I still have my piano and play it whenever I can, but in the last few years I have developed idiopathic scoliosis, and my lumbar spine has several pinched nerves, so I cannot sit for hours on end on a piano bench like I once used to do.

Re: Ollie just laid her very first egg!!

Well, today, Ollie is pretty much back to her young beautiful self! She has been out here in the livingroom since about 9:00 this morning, has been playing with her toys, and eating her favorite foods. Today was the first day I tried toast on both her and Maxi, and they LOVE it. Don't ask me why I didn't try that one along time ago. I always feed them whole wheat bread every day, but now I'll do the toast. I also am going to try scrambling just the egg whites of an egg for them because another poster wrote that her vet suggested it. So right now, Ollie is doing her 'flapping" ritual. She always does this, displaying her wings and waiting for my attention!! First time she has felt like it for a while now. She somehow looks older after this "experience". And she is getting lighter in color, and I'm thinking "cinnamon" for sure. I only wish I could have seen her parents. Did you ever think that about Jaspa and Gabi? She's sitting beak grinding and listening to classical music!

I was a single mom, so I never dealt with the in-law (outlaw) thing! Thank GOD I didn't have to. My son is 44 years old, and has been married for 24 years this coming Sunday. I have four beautiful granddaughters, ages 22, 20, 8 and 7. The two little ones came along 13 years after the first two, but were planned because my son and his wife LOVE children. My son also is a musician, and owns his own small business, "Music Together". He teaches young children ages 9 months thru 8 years of age all about music! He also has an MBA! I worked in a law office for 20 years, so I know how difficult divorces can be. It is unfortunate that after it is all over the two people can't just put it behind them and stop "stirring the pot" after the agreements have been made and the Court has closed the case.

Re: Ollie just laid her very first egg!!

I'm still looking at cameras, but will have one soon and will post pics! I was crying when I read your post about bringing Gabi back home! I have a strong love for ALL NATURE, so I can easily identify with your feelings. I used to have a tropical fish tank, and I would take the fish that died outside and bury them in the back yard. (lol) I think most people would have just either tossed them in the garbage or maybe put them down the toilet.

Re: Ollie just laid her very first egg!!

Hi Ellen, Do you know if this is the first time your Ollie was ever egg laying? Piper was about 4 years old before she laid her very first egg. In her lifetime she only laid 4 eggs. In the spring, even when I covered her earlier in the evening (about 5ish when I came home from work), her hormones were enraged. There were times she attacked my feet when I took her out of cage to clean and remove the egg that she broke. After several attacks to my feet, one time it even bled, I did take her to my vet and the vet gave her lupron injections about every 2 weeks till her hormones calmed down. Lupron helps the production system to shut down temporarily. There were many spring times when Piper was so hormonal and mean, myself and John had a hard time living with her. I thought my tiel turned into a monster. Good thing we kept Woodstock and Piper in separate cages. Who knows what she would of done to him. So a solution we did try was in the spring when the daylight was lasting longer, we just put her in the another room. After that, we were successful at keeping her hormones under control. After the hormonal stage each spring, she came back to her ole lovable self again.